Rotary refrigerating-machine.



1. J. WOOD.

ROTARY REFHIGEHATING MAC'HINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR.22. 1914.

Patented Dec. 14, 1915.

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JAMES Bl. WOOD, F FORT VVATINE, ENDIANA, ASSIGNGR TO GENERAL ELECTRIC UMPNY, A MORATIGN 'QF NEW YORK.

ROTARY BEFRIGERATING-MCHXNE.

Speccation of Le tiers latent.

Patented Deca Ml, i915.

Application filed pril 22, 19M. Serial No. 33,800.

To all whom t may concern Be it known that l, JAMES J. Woon, a citizen of the United States, residing at Fort l/Vayne, in the county of Allen, State of lndiana, have invented certain new and useful improvements in Rotary Refrigerating-Machines, o1 which the following),q is a specication.

My present invention relates to Arotary refrigerating' machines ci the type comprising a closed condenser, Within which is arranged a compressor member and a closed refrigr crater, the condenser' and refrigerator being connected by a hollow shaft. rllhe condenser in such'a refrigeratingmachine contains a liquid, such as sulur-dioXid, which is liqueied by compression and which subsequently vaporizes in the refrigerator, producing a fall of temperature. The members of the machine also contain a lubricant :for the 'Working parts thereof which 'becomes mixed with the refrigerating liquid to a consideralole extent in the operation of the reachine, for reasons which will be explained later. A

My invention comprises certain improvements in such refrigerating machines by ivhich their eiiciency is increased and by which the disassembly of the parts thereo" is facilitatedo alu the operation of Athe re'lrigeratiup,l niachines of the type described above as heretofore constructed, l have discovered that the relatively low speeds at which such inacliines must operate for the proper opera tion of the compressors, the lubricant and the refrigerating liquid are liable to mii; and forni an emulsion, and that if this occurs the elhciency of the machine is nieterially reduced; whereas, if the oil and re- Ifrigerating liquid are kept from mixing so that the reirigerating liquid remains in contact with the drums and the oil torres a iilni inside el" the relrigerating liquid, the inachine Will operate at maximum eiiiciency. At ordinary speeds of operation there is also a tendency lor the oil and refrigeratine,l liquid to collect to some extent die lowest pointsrof the condenser drum the refrigerator drum, instead or? distriloutiifigthemselves vuni'iorinly about the inner surfaces of the drums by centrifugal The emulsion oi oil and rerieerati is not a goed conductor of heat o ces cool the drums as rapidly as would be the case if the refrigerating liquid were free 'from oil. lf the oil and refrigerating liquid collect at the bottoni oi the drums in sulicient quantity, the Whole machine will be caused to rotate as a unit and will thus become inoperative.

illy invention has for one of its objects to provide means which Will effectually prevent the mixing of the lubricant and re rigeratin'g liquid into an emulsion in the operation of the machine. lhis mixing may occur in the ordinary type of machine heretofore employed in the condenser drum or in the refrigerating drum, or both, and have found that by providing one or both of these chambers With blades extending' radially inward from the drum at the point of greatest diameter, the oil and the liquid, as they .iloW from the compressor member into the condenser drum, will be carried around together. The refrigerating liquid, being heavier, will be distributed about the inner surface ci the drum,V and the oil, which is lighter in Weight, Will float as a iilrn on trie inner surface of the refrigeratinn; liquid. The gathering member or scraper will take up the oil and the refrigeratinrg liquidin the ordinary manner and deliver it into the reservoir, lout since the oil and liquid exist as separate and distinct lilins, they ivi-ll be delivered into the reservoir in this same form, and most of the` oil will rise to the surface of the body of refrigeratingr liquid contained therein. Some oil will, however, become mixed with the refrigerating liquid and so will be carried over to the re'rigeratingF drum. ln order to prevent this oil 'from forming an emulsion with the re'rigerating liquid after it has reached the relrigerating drum, l provide this drum also with a series of inwardly projecting blades at the point of greatest diameter, the blades in this casebeingv; considerably larger than in the-condenser drum, since they have to handle a larger volume.

T537 another `eature of iny invention, l a. able to very considerably facilitate the disassembly oi@ the machine. ln refrigerating; machines of the type described above as heretofore constructed, tube, which is fasitened to the compressor niember l the reirigerator through i for conveyingI the re'fi'igerat ng liquid to the refrigerator, has had rigidly connected thereto an oil separator, in order to hold the oil separator against rotation with ref erence to the tube and compressor member and in its proper position in a longitudinal direction with respect to the hollow shaft. This construction has necessitated taking apart not only the condenser drum but also the refrigerator drum, in case it was desired to remove the compressor member from the condenser drum. In accordance with this feature of my invention, one can take apart either the condenser or the refrigerator to examine the mechanism, without interfering with the drum which has not been taken apart, and without losing any of the lubricating oil which will settle in one or the other of the drums, depending upon the way v in which the machine is set up. To this end my invention consists in providing locking members between the tube and separator so arranged that they hold the tube and the separator against relative rotation, but leave them free to move longitudinally with respect to one another. I preferably also provide means for holding the oil separator in its proper position in a longitudinal direction with respect to the hollow shaft.

For a better understandingv of my invention, reference may be had to the following description taken in connection with the ac companying drawing, in which- Figure 1 is a sectional view of a refrigerating machine embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a view of a part of the machine of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a View of a detail; Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line 1--41 of Fig. 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows; and Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig..2 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to the drawing, 6 is a hollow shaft which carries and actuates a closed condenser '7 and a closed refrigerator 8, and puts these two members in communication for circulating the gases and liquids. A

compressor member 9 is freely suspended from this shaft within the condenser and is weighted by a-weight 10 which prevents it from turning with the shaft 6.

In order to keep the lubricant and the refrigerating liquid from mixing and formi ing an emulsion, I provide one or both of the drums, at theirpoints of greatest diameter, with inwardly extending blades 11 and 12. These blades also preferably extend substantially in the direction of the axis of rotation of the drums, and may be punched out of sheet metal strips 13 and 14. The strip 13 is held in place by centrifugal force between shoulders 15 in the drum 7. The strip 14, which may be formed of two parts, as shown, is held in place by centrifugal force and bycrimping the edges thereof which engage the curved parts of the drum 8. The ends of the strips may be joined so as to make a complete ring in any suitable way, as by passing one end between two slides on the other end, as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing. The blades may be ofthe shape shown in either the condenser drinn or the refrigerator drum of Fig. 1.

A tube 16, fastened to the compressor member, extends into the refrigerator.

An oil separator 17 is freely mounted on the shaft 6 within the refrigerator.

In order to hold the oil separator against rotation with reference to the tube and compressor member, I provide locking members -18 and 19 between the tube 16 and the oil separator.

The locking member 18 which is fastened to the tube 16 is preferably a key of peculiar shape which slidably fits into a hole of the same shape in the locking member on the oil separator. This arrangement allows the tube to move longitudinally with respect to the oil separator.

In order to hold the oil separator in its proper position in a longitudinal direct-ion with respect to the hollow shaft but independently of the tube 16, I provide a finger 2() fastened to the separator which fits into a groove 21 in the hollow shaft. If the compressor member has been removed, thereby withdrawing the tube from the refrigerator, it may be readily replaced, the key 18 passing into the hole in the locking member 19 on the oil separator, the oil separator being held from longitudinal movement by the finge.i.20, andin approximately the correct working position by a counterweight 22.

The compressor member 9 carries compressors and also the mechanism for distributing the lubricating oil and for collect ing the same and separating it and for circulating the liquids. T he compressors, only one of which is shown in the drawing, are oscillating and double-acting- Each compresser is mounted in the compressor member by means of trnnnions 23 and is provided with a piston 24. The piston rods 25 end in collars 26 which embrace the eccentric 27 mounted on the shaft 6, so that the rotation of the shaft reciprocates the pistons. Each oscillatingl compressor cylinder carries on the inlet side a valve plate 28 furnished with two ports 29 which the oscillations of the cylinder alternately puts in comlnunicaforcing the oil ahead of it.

valves, has holes 33 in the bottom thereof, (one ofwhich is shown in dotted lines) for allowing the refrigerating liquid, which has been,separated from the oil by gravity, to escap'e into the druid-,.- lfhe-oil which remains in this chamber `is. supplied to the working partslof the compressor and to the bearings 31. rEhe liquid inthe drum 7 is collectedbythe scraper 35 and enters the reservoir 36, The' refrigerating liquid, which is heavier than the oil which may have escaped with the refrigerating liquid from the chamber 32, settles in the sump 3T from which it is conveyed by a pipe into the chamber 39. The tube 1G, which extends into the refrigerator, through the oil-separator 17 as explained above, serves to' supply the refrigerating liquid to the refrigerator. It is rigidly connected to the compressor member, and consequently does not revolve with the hollow shaft 6 which surrounds it. ln

the chamber 3S) is a valve 40 with a float for controlling the opening of the tube 16 so as to allow liquid to pass into the refrigerator when enough has entered to raise the float. The shaft (3 is also provided with an equalizing ralve L11, the object of which is to instantly equalize the pressures as soon as the machine stops, 'and consequently7 very rapidly equalize the temperatures in the condenser and refrigerator, by automatically putting them in communication as soon as the machine stops. This 'valve is closed by a weight 42, thro-wn out-by centrifugal force, and is opened by a spring 43'. This weight and the spring .43 are so proportioned that the valve y11 is closed when the machine arrives at 60% of its speed, the Valve remaining closed until the machine falls to about of its speed. Without this equalizing valve the refrigerating machine would require a very large motor to start it, much larger than necessary to run it after it has started.

The oil separator 1? comprises a box containing three settling chambers 44, 45, and i6, the chambers and o being in effect a single chamber, as they are connected by a pipe i7. rlhis box is supported as explained above and communicates with the interior of the hollow shaft 6. Scrapers and i9 serve to automatically collect and bring into the `settling chambers of the separator the refrigerating liquid and oil, the refrigerating liquid being separated from the oil and distributed in a uniform film in contact with the drum 8 and the oil forming a film inside of the refrigerating liquid, by means of the blades 12. The oil and sulfur dioxid separate in these chambers by gravity, the sulfur dioxid settling at the bottom ani The excess of sulfur dioxid runs out of tubes and 51 into the drum 8.

-The operation of the machine is as follows: The compressors draw from the refrigerator 8 the gas of the refrigerating liquid, throughthe hollow shaft 6, into the pockets 52, through cored passages in the compressor member S) (not shown),inlet passages 30 and ports 29, and after compressing the gas, forces it out through outlet Valves (not shown) into the chamber 82 of the compressor member, from which it enters the drum T through the holes 33. This gas is thus compressed and liquefied by the compressors. The refrigeratingliquid, which under the centrifugal action of the rotating apparatus and by means of the blades 13 is separated from the oil and distributed in a uniform film against the inner side of the condenser drum T, is continuouslyv collected by the scraper b5 which passes it into the reservoir 31u where it is separated by gravity from any oil which may also be collected by the scraper, the refrigerating liquid entering the chamber 239 through the. pipe 38. The refrigerating liquid enters the refrigerator from the chamber 39 through the pipe 1G whenever the valve l() is open. The evaporation of tlierefrigerating liquid in the refrigerator cools the drum, and the gas is then pumped back through the hollow shaft 6 as explained above.

il fusible plug 53 seals the end of the refrigerator. and is arranged to blow out at 10()O C., as at that temperature the pressure in the drums rises to several hundred pounds per square inch.

f desire it to be understood that my invention is not limited to the particular arrangements shown and described, and l aim in the appended claims to cover all modifications whieh do not depart from the spirit and scope of my invention.

lWhat i claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. A rotary refrigerating machine comprising a yclosed condenser drum, a closed refrigerator drum, a hollow shaft common to both, and means for carrying the liquid contained in one of said drums around with said drum in a substantially uniform film.

ji rotary refrigerating machine comprising a closed condenser drum, a closed refrigerator drum, a hollow shaft common to both, and means for substantially uniformly distributing the liquid contained in one of said drums about the inner surface thereof at its point of greatest diameter.

.Si rotary refrigerating machine comprising a closed condenser drum, a closed refrigerator drum, a hollow shaft common to both, and blades extending inwardly from one of said drums at its point of greatest diameter and rotating therewith.' l

if. AL rotary refrigeratiug machine comprising a closed condenser drum, a closed refrigerator drum, a hollow shaft common to both, and a member having inwardly extending blades mounted at the point of greatest diameter in one of said drums, so as to rotate therewith.

5. A rotary refrigerating machine comprising a closed condenser drum, a closed' refrigerator drum, a hollow shaft common to both, and a member having blades mounted at the point of greatest diameter in one of said drums so as to rotate therewith, said blades extending inwardly and substantially in the direction of the axis of rotation.

46. A rotary refrigerating machine comprising a closed condenser drum, a closed refrigerator drum, a hollow shaft common to both, and blades extending inwardly from said drums at their pointsof greatest diameter and rotating therewith.

7 A rotary refrigerating machine comprising a closed condenser drum, a closed refrigerator dr-um, a hollow shaft common to both, and membershaving inwardly extending blades mounted at the points of greatest diameter in both of said drums so as to rotate therewith. y

8. A rotary refrigerating machine comprising a closed condenser drum, a closed refrigerator drum, a hollow shaft common to both,and members having blades mounted at the points of greatest diameter in both of said drums so as to rotate therewith, sald blades extending inwardly and substantially in the direction of the axis of rotation.

9. A rotary refrigerating machine com prising a closed condenser drum, a closed refrigerator drum, a hollow shaft common to both, and a sheet metal member having inwardly extending .blades mounted in said condenser drum so as to rotate therewith, and a second sheet metal member having'inwardly extending blades 'mounted in said refrigerator drum so as to rotate therewith.

10. A rotary refrigerating machine comprising aolosed condenser, a closed refrigerator, a hollow shaft common to-both, a compressor memberl free on the shaftwithin the condenser, an oil separator freely mounted on said hollow shaft within the refrigerator, a -tube fastened to said compressor member and extending into said refri erator through said hollow shaft, and loc ing members between said tube and said separator for holding said tube and said separator against relative rotation but so that they are free to move longitudinally with respect to one another. 4

11. A rotary refrigerati-ng machine comprising a closed condenser, a closed refrigerator, a hollow shaft common to both,a compressor member free on the shaft within the condenser, an oil separator freely mounted on said hollow shaft within the refrigerator, a tube fastened to said compressor member and extending into said refrigerator through said hollow shaft, locking members between said ltube and said separator for holding said tube and said separator against relative rotation but so that they are free to move longitudinally with respect to one another, and means for holding said oil separator in a longitudinal direction with respect to said hollow shaft but independently of said tube. y

12. A rotary refrigerating machine comprising a closed condenser, a closed refrigerator, a hollow shaft common to both, a compressor member free on the shaft within the condenser, an oil separator freely mounted on said hollow shaft within the refrigerator, a tube fastened to said compressor member and extending into said refrigerator through said hollow shaft, and locking members between said tube and said oil separator comprising a keyfastened to said tube and a member on sai-d separator having an opening of the same shape as said key for holding said tube and said separator against vrelative rotation but so that they are free to move longitudinally with respect to one another.

13. A rotary refrigerating machine comprising a closed condenser, a closed refrigerator, a hollow shaft common to both, a compressor member'free on the shaft within the condenser, an oil separator freely mounted on said hollow shaft within the refrigerator, a tube fastened to said compressor member and extending into said refrigerator through said hollow shaft, lock* ing members between said tube and said oil separator comprising a key fastened to said tube and 'a member on said separator having an opening of the same shape as said key for holding said tube and said separator against relative rotation but so that they are free to move longitudinally with re-` spect to one another, and means for holding said oil separator in a longitudinal direction with respect to said hollow shaft but independently of said tube.

14. A rotary refrigerating machine comprising a closed condenser, a closed refrigerator, a hollow shaft common to both, a compressor member free on the shaft within the condenser, mounted on said hollow shaft within the refrigerator, a tube fastened to said compressor member and lextending into said refrigerator through said hollow shaft, locking members between said tube and said oil separator comprising a key fastened to said tube and a member on said separator having an opening of the same shape as said key for holding said tube and said separator against relative rotation but so that they are free to move longitudinally with respect t0 one another, said hollow shaft having a groove, and a finger fastened to said oil separator and fitting in saidl groove.

15. A rotary refrigerating machine comprising a closed condenser, a closed refrigeran oil separator freely 115 ator, a hollow shaft common to both, a comlongitudinally with respect to one another, pressor member free on the shaft within the said hollow shaft having a groove, and a. condenser, an oil separator freely mounted finger fastened to said oil separator and fiton said hollow shaft within the refrigerator, ing in said shaft.

. 5 :L tube fastened to said compressor member In Witness whereof, I have hereunto set 1- and extending into said refrigerator through my hand this 20th day of April, 1914.

said hollow sha/ft, locking members between n JAMES J. WOOD. said tube and said separator for holding lVitnesses: said tube and said separator against relative N. E.- CRANE,

10 rotation but so that they are free to move S. M. GARMAN. 

